Bernadette Nolan

Bernadette "Bernie" Therese Nolan (born 17 October, 1960 in Crumlin, Dublin, Republic of Ireland) is an Irish born English singer, actress and entertainer, formerly lead vocalist of the Nolan sisters. She was raised in Blackpool, England after her family re-located there in 1962.

Early career

She originally found fame as a member of The Nolans, a group consisting over the years of her many sisters, and releasing hits such as "I'm In The Mood For Dancing", which was in the charts for over twenty weeks, "Don't Make Waves", "Pay Attention To Me" and "Crashing Down". The Nolans have sold millions of albums worldwide, particularly in Japan where they sold over 9 million albums and are still selling many more. Her sisters are Linda, Coleen, Maureen, Anne and Denise. She also has two brothers called Brian and Tommy.

Acting

She left the group in 1994 to concentrate on her own acting career, which had begun with her 1993 performance in the stage play "The Devil Rides Out".

In 2000 she joined the cast of Channel 4's soap opera "Brookside", after being noticed by Paul Marquess whilst starring in the play "Blood Brothers". She left in 2002 to play Sheelagh Murphy in ITV's police drama series "The Bill". Her character Sheelagh had an affair with Des Taviner, their baby daughter then died and Des, who had killed six fellow officers, was beaten to death in custody. Other traumas included finding out that her son was gay and behind several 'homophobic' attacks. Although Bernie left The Bill in 2005 the door was left open, for a return, due to her character's enduring popularity.

In 2006 she took part in Channel 4's series "The Games", arriving last in the females category. However, rumours abound that she may have actually come fourth and was only ranked last due to a scoring error. Her stint on the game was to raise money for charity, including Alzheimer's and children's charities. Her latest theatre role will be in the 2007 Manchester Opera House pantomime Cinderella, in which she will play the fairy Godmother.

In 2007, Bernie starred in the play "Mum's the Word", and was lined up to star in the Iceland adverts for the summer with her younger sister Coleen. During summer season she appeared at the Blackpool North Pier Theatre in her own production, "Soap Queens (And Kings!)". [ [http://www.blackpoollive.com/shows_events_soapqueens.html North Pier Listings] ]

Bernie is currently starring in FLASHDANCE - THE MUSICAL! opening in Plymouth's Theatre Royal this July, as Hannah Owens.

Return to Singing

In 2005, Nolan released her debut solo album "All By Myself". The album was then re-released towards the end of 2006. The album consists mainly of power ballads, including the song "Better Place", written by Bernie's husband in memory of their stillborn daughter, Kate.

Personal life

Bernie is married to Steve Doneathy, a drummer, and they have one daughter, Erin Kate, born on the 26th April 1999. She released the single Macushla in 2004 with the proceeds going to charity, as her own daughter Kate was stillborn. On this Lorraine Kelly wrote: "I wouldn't have expected anything else from one of the hardest working women in showbiz".

Websites & references

"'http://www.bernienolan.com - The Official website
* [http://www.xonder.de/cgi-bin/forumservice/foren/F_0694/cutecast.pl?session=HhdDN8Frm2uOY8pDgcwq18ml0E#5 The Nolans Forum, with a special room for Bernie]